Events this day in Queer History

Born this day

Tsar Alexander I of Russia(1777 - 1825)
Grandson of Catherine the Great, who came to the throne following the assassination of his father, Paul I. Rumors of his homosexuality began circulating shortly after his coronation in 1801. During the early part of his rule, he relied on an "Unofficial Committee," composed of four of his young companions, for political guidance and support.

Christa Winsloe(1888 – 1944) German

German-Hungarian novelist, playwright and sculptor, best known for her play Gestern und heute, filmed in 1931 as "Mädchen in Uniform",the first detailed play on female homosexuality in the Weimar Republic.
During World War II, she joined the French Resistance.In 1944, she and a companion were shot and killed by four Frenchmen, who mistook them for Nazi spies.

Carol Ann Duffy(1955 – ) UK

Professor of Contemporary Poetry at the Manchester Metropolitan University, and was appointed Britain's poet laureate, She is the first woman, the first Scot, and the first openly gay person to hold the position. Duffy rose to greater prominence in UK poetry circles after her poem "Whoever She Was" won the Poetry Society National Poetry Competition in 1983, and went on to gain both critical and popular success.

Tim Fountain(1967 – ) UK

Playwright whose first major success was "Resident Alien", based on the life and writings of Quentin Crisp. Fountain hit the headlines in 2004 when his one man show, "Sex Addict" opened at the Edinburgh Festival. During the show he solicited sexual partners on-line and the audience got to choose who he had sex with.

Nikolai Alekseev (1977 – ) Russian

LGBT rights activist, lawyer and journalist. In October 2010, Nikolay Alexeyev won the first ever case at the European Court of Human Rights on LGBT human rights violations in Russia when the court unanimously ruled that by banning three Moscow Prides in 2006, 2007 and 2008 Russia had breached three articles of the European Convention.

Died this day

Pierre Gripari (1925 - 1990 ) French

Writer who first gained critical success with his autobiography, "Pierrot-la-lune". Until his death, he was more known to French audiences as a children's author. His other work, was not commercially successful, often included gay themes.

Vincent Fourcade(1934 - 1992 ) French

Interior designer and the business and life partner of Robert Denning. "Outrageous luxury is what our clients want," he once said.

Pierre Vallieres (1938 - 1998 ) Canadian

Journalist and writer, who was considered an intellectual leader of the Front de libération du Québec.

Sodomy in history, December 23rd

1833 — Georgia changes the wording of its sodomy law to read "man with man or in the same unnatural manner with woman," thus eliminating the possibility of Lesbians being prosecuted. The penalty of life imprisonment is retained.

1917 — The North Carolina Supreme Court upholds the sodomy conviction of a man who claims that, since he is 52 years old and a father, he can not possibly be guilty of sodomy. The Court agrees that it is difficult to believe, but does not question the jury’s finding.